The present invention relates to a video camera mounting system for a rifle, and the like, that allows the user, i.e. hunter, to videotape the scenery or game being sought. The invention includes a shock absorbing mechanism that protects the video camera from impact of the rifle's recoil.
The use of photography equipment employing telephoto lenses for photographing wildlife is well known in the art, however, using a camera with a rifle in combination with a telescope is only a recent development. The general combination of a photographic means secured to a firearm is reflected in the following U.S. Patents:
a.) U.S. Pat. No. 5,887,375, to Watson, teaches a camera mount for firearms. The mount comprises a base plate; an intermediate plate operatively attached to the base plate; a dampening material, operatively attached between the base plate and the intermediate plate, for dampening recoil forces transmitted to the intermediate plate; and a mounting plate removably attached to the intermediate plate. The mounting plate includes a camera attachment device for allowing attachment of a camera to the mounting plate; and an adjustment mechanism, operatively connected between the intermediate plate and the mounting plate, for allowing the camera to be aligned with respect to the firearm. The camera mount further includes a firearm mounting device, operatively attached to the base plate, for mounting the camera mount to the firearm.
b.) U.S. Pat. No. 5,020,262, to Pena, discloses a camera mount for use on a telescope in combination with a rifle. The mount is clamped onto the telescope, and has a camera attached to the top of the mount. A cable mechanism is attached at one end to the shutter release of the camera and at the other end to the trigger of the rifle. The camera is arranged to photograph the image received through the telescope and reflected through the mount. The cable mechanism provides means for controlling the operation of the camera. A housing is clamped onto the telescope and has an eyepiece which fits onto the eyepiece of the telescope and contains a split prism which is positioned in the eyepiece at an angle such that it can be seen through for viewing the image of the target received through the telescope. The split prism has a reflective surface on one side which reflects the image of the target upwardly to a first surface mirror positioned in the housing above the split prism at an angle such that it receives the image reflected from the split prism, and then reflects the image forwardly to a second surface mirror. A second surface mirror is positioned at the forward end of the housing and at an angle that it receives the image reflected from the first surface mirror, and then reflects the image upwardly to the camera lens. The image of the target is photographed when the trigger of the rifle is pulled.
c.) U.S. Pat. No. 4,835,621, to Black, related to a video camera recording device having a gunstock and a support structure which includes a mounting platform adapted to receive thereon a hand held video camera recorder having a lens structure defining a line of sight, a recording medium for recording video information, and a viewfinder and mounting structure for mounting the viewfinder onto the gunstock. Structure is provided for effecting a sequential activating and deactivating of the video camera recording device for the purpose of starting a recording of video information onto the recording medium and stopping the recording, respectively. A gun sight is located in the line of sight so as to be visible through the viewfinder when the video camera recorder is recording video information on the recording medium. A trigger is provided on the gunstock and is adapted to be manually activated by a finger of a user'hand. A signal generator is provided which generates a signal visible through the viewfinder in response to the user activating the trigger. The signal is also simultaneously recorded on the recording medium.
d.) U.S. Pat. No. 4,309,095, to Buckley, teaches a camera mounting device for mounting a camera to a hunting rifle. The device comprising a first mounting bracket adapted to support a camera, a threaded fastener to detachably secure a camera to the first bracket, a variable diameter clamp to clamp the first mounting bracket to the barrel of the telescope sight of a rifle, a cable release for remote actuation of the camera, a second mounting bracket connected to the cable release, and threaded fasteners for detachably securing the second mounting bracket to the trigger guard of a rifle so that actuation of the cable release is coordinated to actuation of the rifle trigger.
e.) U.S. Pat. No. 4,920,219, to Boller, et al., disclosed a rifle having a telescopic sight for recording the target as seen through the telescopic sight at the instant the trigger is pulled. The apparatus includes a beam splitter for directing to a camera some of the light passing through the telescopic sight. The shutter mechanism of the camera is coupled to the rifle trigger so that the camera will "shoot" the picture of the target when the trigger is pulled. The camera is of the instant-copy type so that pictures of the target can be viewed shortly after "shooting". The apparatus thus enables the ability of a rifleman to be tested without the need for firing live ammunition.
f.) U.S. Pat. No. 3,911,451, to Vockenhuber, relates to a telescopic gun sight with a mount for a removable camera to enable an object to be photographed through the telescope. The light path from the telescope to the camera is provided by a beam splitter which separates some of the light traveling along the optical axis of the telescope and diverts it towards a collimator and a window in the wall of the telescope. The collimator provides parallel rays from this diverted light so that the camera attached to the mount can be a fixed focal-length camera. An arrangement is provided for blanking off the window when the camera is not fitted to the telescope.
g.) U.S. Pat. No. 3,785,261, to Ganteaume, teaches an apparatus adapted to make an immediate record as by a photograph of a theoretical hit such as in hunting wild game. There is disclosed both a mechanical and an electrically actuated means for causing this theoretical hit to be exposed on the film of a camera which is carried by and actuated with the pulling of the trigger of the gun. The distance, trajectory and windage factors are reflected in this photographic record. The hunter using the gun fires a blank cartridge rather than a real cartridge so that this photographic record indicated what results this hunter would have achieved had a real bullet been fired.
While the prior art presents a number of alternatives to video recording of a target or potential "kill", the respective alternatives are generally complex and less user friendly than found in the present invention. The manner by which the invention hereof offers an effective solution to providing the user, i.e, hunter, with the opportunity to target a potential "kill", will become apparent to those skilled in the art from the following description, particularly when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.